An Unlikely Arrangement is the story of Abigail Dupree who suffers from guilt after an event that she believes to have ruined her. The only way she can fix it is to reunite with the man who ruined her.

Garrett Barringer arrives in Charlotte, North Carolina to escort Abigail to her former home in Asheville North Carolina. Garrett is trying to escape the past for what he believes is his greatest failure.

Abigail finally gets the proposal she believed would correct her wrong. But after spending time with the man, she thought she cared about, she begins to see him as he is. Abigail with end up with several marriage proposals but will she marry the man of her dreams or end up unhappy for the rest of her life.

This is a wonderful story about making mistakes and forgiving yourself. Not everything is as it seems when the people in the story are hiding truths that can harm or free the person they love.

I wasnt aware that this was a Christian fiction historical novel when I requested it via netgalley and for the most part I wasnt aware, however the last section of the book is quite heavy on faith and this might but some people off. Other than that I found it an enjoyable read.

Bottom line: I would rate this a 3.5⭐️ and I would read more by this author.

This book was an interesting read. While it may not be my favorite book by this author, I did love the originality of the storyline, the setting, and by time I finished reading, I was satisfied with how the story ended.

I did struggle with the pacing, the first half felt slow and slightly repetitive as it set the stage for the second half where Abigail Dupree’s character grew and matured and the story progressed at a better speed. I also wouldn’t have minded if the ending of the story could have been a little longer instead of speeding up and wrapping up in the last dozen pages.

There were a few details that didn’t seem to fit with the time period, but there were two main things that kept me from being able to fully immerse in the story. The first being that in a time where virtue and reputation were so protected (and the first few chapters made a big emphasis on this point), Abigail was sent off on a trip without a maid to chaperone. While it made sense that her own maid wasn’t able to go with her, for her parents to not have another lower servant accompanying her as a walk-on (to borrow the stage term) seemed at odds with the time period and the goal of protecting her reputation.

The other detail was how often Abigail Dupree touched the arm (etc) of a man she didn’t really know. While the reader quickly learns how impulsive Abigail is, the physical end just felt a little too much, too soon for the time period and the mentioned guilt about her past.

I did enjoy the second half of the book and was glad I kept reading. There here were many complexities to the story that were thoughtfully added and addressed later in the second half of the book, which kept me coming back to read more. The theme of redemption was tastefully woven through the lives of Abigail and those that love her.


Thank you for the opportunity to read this story. I enjoyed this book and would read more by this author in the future.

Amazon review submitted and pending

Set in the early 1900s in North Carolina, Abigail is trying to salvage her reputation in a way that matches her fierce independent nature. With an older suitor set up by her mother, she heads back to Asheville to find her first love and convince him to marry her. Enter Garrett, an honorable man trusted by her father to accompany her as a chaperone to keep her from making any further mistakes.

I very much wanted to love this story, a period romance with a sweet MMC. I struggled with the language and sentence structure that kept taking me out of the story. The language would switch from older English to present day. Every sentence would be so overly detailed and sometimes with wording that didn’t make any sense. There was a lot of telling instead of showing and repetitive situations that I just didn’t think helped further the story. I would have loved to see more interactions with other characters that didn’t result in Abigail crying, holding back tears or running away immediately. Also, less internal monologuing and more actual conversation would have been great.

As for what I enjoyed, I really liked the character of Garrett. He was caring and sweet. I was intrigued by the setting of Biltmore and loved the detail surrounding it and the area. While I don’t necessarily look for religion in romance books, it was nice to see Christianity involved (albeit sometimes randomly placed). The addition of Alice Roosevelt was very refreshing and nice to see an interaction with a woman that could become a budding friendship. The relationship between Abigail’s parents, her father especially, is so loving and it’s wonderful to see that for this time period. I had expected some closure with the buildup of Rose, but the ending was really cute. I wish we could have had more, but I was still happy with it. This book is the definition of slow-burn romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC and all opinions expressed are my own.

This book snagged my attention from the beginning and did not let go. It follows Abigal Dupree and Garrett Barringer as they navigate the whims of society. Abigail has been given away to a man she does not love to settle a deal her parents made. Garrett has been hired by Abigail's father to do a job he isn't qualified for. They are forced to spend time together due to circumstances beyond Abigail's control. As they get to know one another, they find out that maybe the other isn't as horrible as they originally thought. Abigail grew on me too as the book went on. In the beginning, I was not so sure of her but she does have character growth. Garrett was immediately likable from the beginning. This book is dual pov so we get to peek into the minds of both characters. This is a clean historical romance. It does have Christian themes and undertones that are wonderfully done. I truly enjoyed this book and will be looking forward to the others to come in this series.
Thank you to NetGalley. These opinions are my own.

Despite the intriguing synopsis and its key topics sounding right up my alley, several points quickly arose that had me unfortunately DNF it rather early on. The pacing at the start is very "blow on blow," without sufficient transitions between actions and descriptions that would've softened the storytelling and made it flow more easily, instead of it sounding as if one was reading a report of sorts. It is the flat tone that left me cold at times of emotional outbursts or other. Furthermore, there are grammatical and punctuation errors that threw me off even more. The tone and expressions used were sometimes not appropriate for the time, as were some plot points. For example, you had the mother tell Abigail that "it isn't proper" for a young woman to travel alone, while she later on is allowed to travel in the company of a single man as her chaperone. Never would parents have let this happen back then, especially not one of their social standing. What I will say I appreciated, though, is Abigail's openly voiced criticism of social constructs of the time, that she does not agree with how "a woman's place is at home with her husband" and that she wished to marry for love. That reminded me of my favorite literary heroine Lizzie Bennet. Her continued behavior, however, went a bit too far.

Overall, it is the historical inaccuracies that I would have to say bothered me the most and, as someone who wrote her bachelor's on 19th and early 20th-century fiction of this genre, I simply could not disregard or turn the occasional blind eye to.

In 1902, Abigail Dupree faces societal disgrace and financial ruin, becoming a pawn in her mother's desperate scheme. As Garrett Barringer enters her world, hired by her father, Abigail struggles against her growing attraction while Garrett fights to keep his promises and resist forbidden love. With her reputation and heart on the line, Abigail must choose between societal expectations and the possibility of a future with Garrett.

When I saw that this was set around Biltmore, I was immediately intrigued. Biltmore is a gorgeous place and would make a great setting for a book. However, I found little else that I liked about this book. I didn’t like Abigail at all and found Garrett boring. They squabbled so much I wasn’t rooting for either of them.

The plot was filled with unlikely events, so much that I would constantly put the book down and walk away. And any time I have to look up a detail because it sounds wrong and then it is, frustrates me to no end. (I could find no “overhead storage” for a carriage for that time. And jodhpurs were years from being something women wore to ride.) And some of the dialogue was just strange. The words used just made no sense at all.

Clearly, I was not the intended reader for this book and I wouldn’t recommend it.

An unlikely arrangement was breathtakingly beautiful. Set during one of my favorite time periods, this book brought all the feelings of a Jane Austen novel which I loved.

DNF at 25%. The story itself has great potential, but is let down by slow pacing and poor sentence structure. There are so many sentence fragments that I kept getting distracted and found it impossible to get into the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book. Opinions are my own.

This was a sweet romance set in the late 1800s in the United States. I appreciate the setting as relatively rare since most romances from this time period seem to be set in England. The settings are beautiful. The Biltmore hotel is described in lovely detail and it made me feel as if I was there. The main female character is a bit of a brat but that is to be expected in this genre. They can't fall in love immediately or that would spoil the fun.

A few things about this story stretch belief. The first is that the heroine's father trusts the hero almost immediately upon meeting him and allows him to accompany his daughter on a trip through wilderness alone. The second is that the characters are Christian and speak as like modern evangelicals. They seem to believe that they have a personal relationship with God. Although this idea did start in the 1850s, it was not very popular until nearly 100 years later. People in this time period, especially the aristocracy, were just not that religious.

Set in North Carolina in 1902, An Unexpected Arrangement follows Abigail Dupree as she tries to make up for her past mistakes and struggles against society’s expectations. Whilst not entirely historically accurate I was swept away into Abigail’s world and enjoyed the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

"An Unlikely Arrangement" by Cindy Patterson captured my attention from the very first sentence. The author's descriptions of places, outfits, and feelings of love were spot-on. The messages of faith and love for our Father were intricately woven throughout the story with precision. The message of our sin not holding us back from the Father once we've truly repented is the biggest one throughout the story. On a personal level, I loved the characters. Abigail was so relatable through her struggles and feelings of inadequacy that I think everyone can agree to have felt at one point or another. Garrett also harbored guilt over the past. But the Father is enough.

I LOVED this story. It was beautiful and painted such a wonderful picture of Christ's love for us as well as a beautiful earthly love to mirror that.

This book! ::dreamy sigh:: I had not discovered this author until now, so this was a first read for me. I was not disappointed! This is the telling of two stories, of Abigail and Garrett, that reflects so deeply the Father's love and forgiveness for us. Both MC have walked their own paths and when those paths cross they are forced to face what they think they know of themselves, one another, and their Creator. This book is a breath of fresh air within the romance realm, keeping you glued to the pages while taking you on subtle twists and turns throughout as the story unfolds. You will not leave disappointed!

I receive an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book. I had high hopes but it moved so slowly, parts were unbelievable (like a young single male as a chaperone to a young single female and even camping out a night). The Christan aspect was at random times Abigail would blurt out part of a scripture. . The author explained in minute detail his feelings and thoughts as well as hers. It seemed over-the-top and unnecessary which made the story drag. I don't think I would necessarily recommend this book unless you want to kill time.

Set in a most favorite place of mine, An Unlikely Arrangement by Cindy Patterson shows a great accuracy in detail. I can visualize the rooms in the Biltmore when they are mentioned. The main characters Abigail and Garrett both have regrets in their past. Even when they know God has forgiven them, they have trouble forgiving themselves. Can they forgive themselves in time to move forward to a life together? A copy was provided for my review with no requirement for a favorable review. All opinions are mine and are freely given.

Abigail Dupre is a young lady running away from the disgrace of her past sins, which has made her family relocate to Charlotte to let the gossip settle in their hometown of Asheville, North Carolina. To conceal her dishonorable past, her parents are blackmailed by William Arandel, a selfish man whose character is quite questionable, and Abigail loathes him. In an attempt to get away from William Randall, Abigail decides to redeem herself by seeking reconciliation with Randall Thorne, the man behind her dishonorable past, but this proves difficult with the unexpected appearance of Garret Barringer, who is not only blessed with good looks but has a perfect character. According to Abigail, only God can tell if she will find the happiness and self-forgiveness that have been lacking in her life, in the end.

In this narration, I like the way the author has managed to come up with a fascinating romance story with a spiritual touch to it. For example, on page 230,”"Do you or do you not believe the Word of God?”” and on page 231, "“Nor do I need to. But you need to accept that God forgave you the first time you repented, Abigail. No matter your sin.”” Readers will encounter such statements in this book, which makes the book more interesting. It is also a beautiful story that will hold the reader in suspense until the end.

I rate this book, An Unlikely Arrangement, by Cindy Patterson 4 out of 5 stars.

I recommend this book to those readers who have a past that needs revisiting to make things right, for they will realize that self-forgiveness is the starting point. I also recommend it to those who love romance as well as historical fiction books that contain a spiritual touch.

Loved reading the inspirational and captivating story. To escape William Arendell's marriage proposal, Abigail willingly goes to her Aunt's house for the summer in hopes of rekindling her romance with Randal Thorne, but Garrett is tasked with keeping Abigail from harm. Read the highly recommended, wonderfully written, and a must read riveting romance story.

I found great pleasure in reading this book, as I have a deep appreciation for historical romance and found this one to be exceptionally well-written.
The story is enthralling, filled with themes of integrity, love, redemption, and faith.
The setting of the time period was captivating and beautiful, adding to my enjoyment of the book.
I am eager to explore more works by this author in the future.

I would like to express my gratitude to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this advance reader copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

Abby and Garrett were extremely likeable and I just wanted to give Abby a hug during the entire book. Forced proximity is one of my favorite tropes and their journey to Ashville ticked that box. Unfortunately there were other elements of the book that did not work for me.. This is a Christian romance and if you are in that demographic, you probably would like this book.

Abigail and Garrett’s love story was a beautiful picture of redemption and grace. When Abigail thought there was no chance at true love for her, God had a different plan. The unfolding of the story kept me guessing. This was an easy read, and very enjoyable. I hope to read more by this author soon!